Of Bosses and Heat Waves
by A Raven's Call
Summary: Who knew short shorts could cause so much trouble? Jo wears short shorts to the Crime Lab and hilarity immediately ensues. JAC. D/L… And Adam. Oneshot.


Hi Everyone! Writing Black and White was _really_ starting to depress me. I'm editing the next three chapters and doing a story diagram, so I don't know how long that's going to take to update. In the meantime, in light of the recent rising temperatures, I decided to make something light and hopefully funny. After all the pain I'm going to put Mac and Jo through, I thought I'd compensate with this one shot.

Here's to Summer! I really can't wait for school to end...

Please Enjoy!

* * *

It was hot. Sweltering. Burning. It was so damn hot that even the well air-conditioned skyscraper seemed like a boiler stuck in Death Valley rolled up in the Sahara.

The entire team had been working nonstop for a few weeks trying to stop a random spree of murders. The entire affair seemed like a competition between the two spree killers to see who could kill the most people with the most finesse.

The team would find one mutilated body of a woman in an alley, analyze the scene, and come back to the lab… to only be called out again by another 9-1-1 call of a man being found strangled to death in a church. It was a relentless, never ending cycle that caused everyone to be at their wits' end.

And of course, these two spree killers _had_ to choose the hottest time of the entire year.

In his office, Mac Taylor swore loudly. He wiped his sweat rolling off his forehead, wishing desperately that the two spree killers running around New York hadn't chosen this month to do it. Rubbing his forehead deliriously, Mac desperately wished for another cup of coffee and some Tylenol. He made his way to the lounge area for something to eat in the vain hope that eating a granola bar might give this case the break they needed.

As he poured himself a cup of coffee, Mac heard footsteps. He turned his head to see who was coming into the abandoned lounge, and suddenly his mouth became very dry.

He blinked. Beautifully tanned legs longer than forever foreign to the crime lab waltzed in to raise the sweltering temperature a couple hundred more degrees. As he saw the owner of the legs, Mac knew his day was about to get a lot hotter.

"What's up, Mac?" the owner of those really stunning legs asked, flashing him a characteristic sunny smile. She made her way to the refrigerator.

He easily fell into step with her. "Jo…"

"That's my name," she sang. Jo rummaged in the refrigerator, and Mac pointedly averted his eyes from her wriggling lower body. The shorts she was wearing were extremely short and revealed more of her creamy skin than Mac thought was healthy to see in this weather.

He noticed a couple of unfortunate Lab Techs peeking into the lounge who looked like they were about to have a heat stroke. A withering glare from Mac sent the lot of them scattering, and he resumed his chivalrous disinterest with her waving behind.

Sometimes he hated being a gentleman.

* * *

"Did you see that?" Adam hissed in Danny's ear, excitedly pointing at Mac's turned back.

"Yeah, yeah." Danny elbowed him in the ribs. "How much do ya wanna bet that he's gonna kill the next guy that looks at her?"

"Well, you can't blame a guy for trying to catch a glimpse." Adam craned his head for a better look. He let out a long whistle. "I thought that she looked good in those coveralls, but damn… Jo has really great legs."

Danny rolled his eyes. "Of course you're the one on the team with the leg fetish."

"Funny, Messer."

"Twenty bucks Mac goes in for a kiss."

"Oh yeah?" Adam raised his eyebrows. "Twenty bucks Mac kisses her _and _asks her on a date."

"That is never going to happen," Danny scoffed, slapping Adam's hand. "You are _so_ on."

* * *

Mac cocked his head as he took in what she was wearing. Though he appreciated seeing the extra skin she was showing, her entire appearance was out of characteristic. It was her nature to be impeccable, dressed without a hair out of place. The Jo Danville he knew and worked with in the lab never wore anything other than the most professional clothing. She would not stroll into the lab in short shorts and a blue button down shirt over a white tank top that was far too low cut unless held at gun point or out of clothes to wear. Her hair was pulled back in a loose bun with a few unruly strands escaping confinement.

She looked hot, and Mac knew she had probably worn the entire get up on purpose.

"Think anyone would mind if I stole their yogurt?" Jo asked as she contemplated a strawberry yogurt from the back of the fridge.

He stood behind her, peering over her shoulder into the overstocked fridge. His breath made the strands of her hair dance. "I had Adam buy some more yesterday when he took a break."

She looked up and gave him a friendly squeeze on the arm. "And that, Mac Taylor, is why you're my hero."

"You should listen to your hero more often," he said, grabbing himself a yogurt from the back of the fridge. His fingers accidentally brushed her leg, the action causing him to flush. His breath caught in his throat and he murmured a soft apology. "You ought to go home," he breathed out a little unsteadily.

Jo threw her shiny brown hair carelessly over her shoulder, whipping the scent of her perfume into his nostrils. He inhaled deeply, relishing the closeness. Mac wanted to wrap his arms around her and drown in that intoxicating fragrance of hers. "That's what _I_ should be saying to you."

"Funny Jo," Mac said wryly. "But seriously, you should. You've been here for ages—"

"You've been here too," she pointed out.

"All the same," he continued, "you look like you're going to collapse."

"Uh huh." Jo gestured for him to come and sit down by her two clear boards filled up with everything from the two cases. She sighed contently, throwing her legs up onto the table.

"You're making me sit by your wall of crazy?" he complained teasingly.

"You don't have to look at it," Jo said between mouthfuls of strawberry yogurt. "Look at something else."

His eyes instinctively wandered down again to her legs.

Jo laughed, playfully kicking him. "Eyes up here, Tiger."

He cleared his throat, embarrassed. "You really should go home and change."

"I'd love to, but some idiot managed to leave the water on and my apartment's kinda underwater."

"Seriously?"

Jo nodded. "It's getting drained out, and it's going to take a while. I figured I might as well start on the case reports and get some work done. Maybe organize my desk. I dunno."

"How about catching our spree killers?"

Jo sighed. "Already done. Why do you think that I'm dressed up like this?"

Mac's eyes shot up into his forehead. "Seriously?"

_If I knew she was going to do this every time we caught a spree killer, I seriously need to contact a couple of psychopaths_, he thought. The idea, however, was stupid and thus punished by being forgotten.

"Mac!" She rubbed her temples with both hands irritably. "This should _not _be news. Don was supposed to call you after the two confessions."

"He might have been caught up in the paperwork." At the outraged look on her face, he attempted to divert the topic. "Anyway, how'd you do get those two to confess? We didn't even have enough evidence to convict them."

Jo winked. "I just had Don put the suspects through traffic so they could sweat it out. Used a bit of that Southern Charm. And wore this outfit for the old secretary trick I used to pull in the F.B.I." She gave him a brilliant grin. "I still got it. They were singing like birds once I was done with it."

_I can't blame them. _He withheld a laugh. "Good job, Jo."

Jo groaned, "That's _it_?"

"What?"

She mock glared at him. "In the South, that's what you tell a dog when it fetches you a stick."

"What do you want to hear then?" Mac asked incredulously.

Her eyes roved over her walls of crazy for a moment before she turned to give Mac a breath taking smile. "I don't know," she admitted. "But that ain't it."

The silence that fell between them was companionable, the tension so thick it could cut it with a knife. As Mac watched her eat her yogurt, he grinned as he noticed a spot of pink on the side of her mouth.

"You have a bit of yogurt on your lip." Mac smiled. His finger swiped across the corner of her mouth, and he licked the strawberry treat off his finger.

He was delighted to see her cheeks become a beautiful scarlet. "Mac Taylor!"

"What's wrong, Jo?" Mac leaned in closer, his hands dangerously close to her cheek.

Jo's tongue ran across her lip slowly, almost seductively. "If I said you looked sexy like that, would you get nervous?"

"Only if you said it."

"Why?"

"Because you're the only one I want to look se—"

"Taylor!" Sinclair popped his head into the lounge. "Do you know where Detective Danville is? I wanted to congratulate her on those two stunning confessions Flack told me about. It was excellent and—" His eyes bugged out when they finally fell on Jo. Sinclair played with his cuffs nervously, a certain suave timbre replacing his usual condescending tone. "And who is this lovely lady?"

"You don't recognize me, Chief Sinclair?" Jo pouted, glancing at Mac. "Do I really look that different in this outfit?"

Mac tapped his eyes and pointed discreetly toward her legs.

Jo's eyes widened with understanding. "Ah."

Sinclair cleared his throat, noticing his mistake. The colors of his cheeks were tinged with pink. "My apologies, Detective Danville. Perhaps we can continue this conversation somewhere more private?"

Jo glanced at Mac before turning to Sinclair with an overly polite grin. "Of course. See you later, Mac."

Mac watched how the Jo showed Sinclair the way to her office and flashed those lovely legs of hers. He noted the hungry look in Sinclair's eyes as the chief of police blatantly stared at Jo's ass. Mac's hand unconsciously tightened around the strawberry yogurt in his hand, and the plastic container burst.

Cursing, Mac was about to clean it up when his eyes fell on the interaction between Jo and Sinclair across the hall.

Judging by the conversation, Mac could tell Sinclair was going to ask Jo out or something. He relished the idea of Sinclair getting shot down, dumped in gasoline, and burned by Jo, but as the two of them talked, Mac saw how Jo's eyes began to sparkle and her laughter no longer seemed forced.

As Sinclair leaned in toward Jo, Mac couldn't take it. Without seeing anymore, he stormed out of the lab.

* * *

"Well, I guess neither of us are getting that twenty," Danny commented, watching Mac's retreating figure with interest. "Pity."

"Out of all the possible scenarios, how are we supposed to know that Sinclair would ask Jo out on a date? He is asking her on a date, right?"

"He is, Adam."

Adam groaned. "He hardly comes down to the Crime Lab if he can help it too… Can we extend this bet to the entire day? How much do you wanna bet Mac is going to do something stupid when he comes back?"

"How about we make a couple of crazier bets? No holds barred?" Danny gleefully rubbed his hands together.

Adam hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Anything goes, I suppose. Adding on more bets in addition to our original ones sounds fair."

Danny grinned. "I bet fifty that Jo's gonna hook up with Sinclair tonight. Didja see the way the two of them were getting on in her office?"

Adam shook his head. "That was only because Jo was probably talking about the Crime Lab. I bet fifty that Mac's going to hook up with Jo once he comes back."

"You sure you're going with that?" Danny raised his eyebrows. "Mac looked pretty pissed."

"Believe me, Danny," Adam laughed. "After Jo played with my mind, I looked into psychology and reading people in attempt to prevent further humiliation."

"How'd that work out?"

Adam pointedly turned away. "She just finds new ways to play with my head."

Danny just rolled on the floor and kept laughing hysterically.

* * *

Nearing the end of Jo's shift, Mac came back to the Crime Lab looking oddly flustered. Ignoring the team's greetings, he flung open the door to Jo's office and threw a bag into her lap. "Here. Wear them."

Jo pulled out the tan material out of the shopping bag. "Capris?" She glanced at him. "What's the occasion? And how'd you even know my size."

"They should fit. I asked Ellie for your size. Please just put them on." Mac said with a heavy blush. "Your legs are too damn distracting."

She puckered her lips curiously. "Are they?"

He narrowed his eyes into tiny slits. "Just put them on, Jo. Please."

"Why, Mac? Jealous?"

"_Jo_."

"But Mac…" She pouted adorably. "It's so hot."

_Not as hot as you. _"You can live in capris," he argued. The air was sticky, clinging to everything like a second skin, and Jo's eyes did not make him feel any cooler.

"Why a sudden interest in what I wear?"

Mac snapped, "It's against the dress code."

"And yet you let Stella get away with how many lot cut tops?" Jo began to close the distance between the two of them, and Mac instinctively took a few steps back. She grabbed his arm and pulled him closer. Jo murmured in his ear, hot breath tickling his skin, "I'm sensing a double standard."

Mac couldn't take it anymore. He was burning up, and her close proximity wasn't helping matters much. "It's for that damn date with Sinclair!" he seethed.

Jo gaped at him. "Sinclair?"

"Yes!" Mac threw his hands up in the air. He was irritated, tired, cranky, and in no mood to sugarcoat his words. "Have you seen the way that guy looks at you? If I catch him staring at you, I don't know what I'll do to him, but I swear it won't be pretty. No. Scratch that. If I see anybody in _this lab_ giving you a salacious look, I'm going to kill them personally after making their lives a living hell."

"Mac," Jo soothed, her hands running down his chest. He groaned at the touch, easing himself into that sensation. "You're hot and bothered and half-dead on your feet. You're not thinking straight. Let's get you back home so you can finally sleep."

"You need sleep too," he murmured through half-lidded eyes, "and going on a date with Sinclair won't help you."

"You think that I accepted a date with Sinclair?" She glared at him, insulted. "He's not my type."

Mac felt his curiosity piqued. "What is your type then?" he asked.

"I thought it was extremely obvious." Jo gave him her all-too-cocky smirk and kissed him on the corner of his mouth.

Before he could even react, she leaned in to kiss him again. Her mouth was so familiar, so delicious, so tender on his, and he instinctively began to kiss her back. She slipped her hands around his neck and pulled him close, the warmth of her body inviting him in, and Mac surrendered to his seizing heart.

He didn't know when he started kissing her back, but he did. Mac remembered the kisses he had shared with Claire – would always remember them – but he would remember this kiss too. Jo's kisses, though passionate, were not hard but had a unique blend of gentleness and fire that was intoxicating, like honeysuckles on the evening air. He needed this kiss, this sweet addiction.

"Is it obvious now?" she whispered as they broke apart for air.

"Mmm." Mac gave her another quick kiss on the mouth. "I believe so."

"Good." Jo continued on matter-of-factly. "Now, let's go to your apartment for some dinner and _maybe_ some shut eye."

Mac furrowed his brow. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Jo? We've lost so many hours of sleep on these two cases."

She winked, placing his hand in the small of her back. "I'm prepared to lose a few more with you, Detective Taylor."

He escorted her out of the Crime Lab with a brilliant grin. "Well, when you put it like that… I suppose losing a few more hours of sleep for you, Detective Danville, wouldn't hurt."

"Oh, I'm sure," she said cheekily, "I could make it worth your while."

* * *

"Whaddup!" Adam cheered, throwing his hands in the air. "Pay up, Messer!"

Danny gaped as he watched his two bosses leave the Crime Lab together. "You don't seriously think that those two are gonna hook up tonight?"

"Oh yes way! Seventy bucks!"

Lindsay ducked into their hiding spot. "Who's going to hook up tonight?"

Danny sheepishly replied, "Jo and Mac."

Instead of an outraged reaction, Lindsay beamed down at the two of them. She squealed. "It's about damn time!"

"About time?" Danny's jaw dropped. "Is this going to be another Peyton?"

"Oh Danny," Lindsay sighed, planting a kiss on his cheek, "I love you, faults and all, but sometimes you're so _dense _for a detective. Those two are practically having eye-sex every moment they can. _Please_ don't tell me you didn't notice."

Danny squirmed on the floor. "Yeah. Sure. I noticed, babe."

She smacked her husband in exasperation. "Danny! This is the biggest lab gossip since Stella left! The entire lab has a betting pool on when they're going to finally start dating."

"Oh…" Danny trailed off. "I actually did not know that…"

"Danny!"

Adam rubbed his stubble pensively. "Do you feel pathetic that we're more interested in our bosses' love lives and our main form of entertainment is betting on when they're going to hook up?"

They all shared glances at each other before shaking their heads.

"Nah."

* * *

And that's all folks!

Forgive me if it's slightly OOC, but then again, I suppose that's to be expected. EVERYONE acts out of character when they're tired, cranky, and hot…

Thanks so much for reading! Comments and Constructive Criticisms are always welcome. Just type in something in that adorable box on the bottom of the screen and hit the entire button!

I hope you enjoyed it!


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